QMASTOR Limited (ASX: QML) - Australia’s leading supplier of bulk material management information systems and services - announced today that it its award winning Pit to Port.net®, SMS3D.net® and iFuse® systems has been selected by Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX:FMG)
Fortescue’s Christmas Creek and Cloud Break mines consist of flat lying ore deposits close to the surface. FMG will mine the ore using surface mining methods often utilised in the coal mining industry. Multiple pits with independent faces will create production flexibility and blending options. Selective ore mining systems will assist with grade control leading to a consistent high quality product. FMG ore will be conveyed to crushers and screened into lump and fines products and then railed 260Km to Port Hedland to FMG’s port facilities for stockpiling, awaiting vessel loading for delivery to the customer.
QMASTOR’s Pit to Port.net is an integrated platform for complete supply chain management, ore tracking, grade control and blending, transportation management and logistics scheduling, contract management and invoicing. QMASTOR’s SMS3D.net is an advanced three dimensional stockpile modelling tool. QMASTOR’s iFuse system provides the necessary integration platform to facilitate automatic data retrieval and export to a range of common mining, enterprise and ERP systems.
Trent Bagnall, QMASTOR Managing Director stated: “QMASTOR is delighted to be selected by Fortescue Metals Group who are implementing their exciting Pilbara Iron Ore Project.”
“The Fortescue team are committed to delivering their groundbreaking Pilbara project on time and within budget, and this is evident in their selection of QMASTOR. Fortescue is on track to mine, rail and ship its first cargo of consistent, high quality ore in early 2008, and QMASTOR’s proven, off the shelf solutions were the only ones capable of meeting these goals.”
“The selection by FMG will facilitate our company’s continued growth in the burgeoning Western Australian resources industry. It complements our long standing 3D stockpile tracking installation utilised at Rio Tinto Iron Ore’s West Angelas and Cape Lambert operations in the Pilbara.”
About Fortescue Metals Group Limited (Fortescue)
Fortescue is a dynamic S&P/ASX 100 company with the primary objective of discovering and developing iron ore deposits in the Pilbara Region of Western Australia. Fortescue is nearing the completion of a substantial infrastructure project to establish large scale mining operations in conjunction with an open access port and rail network to deliver iron ore to the markets of the world.
The company is regarded as the new force in iron ore with over 2.4 billion tonnes of resource (including 1.05 billion tonnes of reserves) and a further 2.6 billion tonnes of resource expected from its 40,000 square kilometres of tenements in the Pilbara region in Western Australia.
Fortescue has raised A$3.7 billion of capital.
Fortescue is developing The Pilbara Iron Ore and Infrastructure Project and will commence shipping ore from Port Hedland in the second quarter of 2008. Contracted long term sales have been set at 45 million tonnes of iron ore per annum, expanding as the market dictates.
Construction of the Project commenced in February 2006 with the turning of the first sod at Fortescue's port site at Anderson Point in Port Hedland. Rapid progress is continuing with dredging completed, the major track-laying program well underway, the Cloud Break air strip receiving jets and accommodation at Port, Rail and Mine sites finished.
Fortescue and Roche Mining Pty Ltd have formed the Pilbara Mining Alliance (PMA) to undertake the mining and iron ore preparation of Cloud Break and Christmas Creek. Ore production is forecast at 45 million tonnes per annum with a planned market driven expansion to 200Mtpa in the foreseeable future.
Fortescue’s first ore is scheduled to be shipped in the second quarter of 2008.
About QMASTOR Limited
QMASTOR Limited (ASX:QML) is a market leader in the provision of specialist management information systems and services to the global mining, port, power generation and other bulk commodity industries.
In 2008, QMASTOR systems will manage over 350 million tonnes of bulk commodity movements per annum in coal, iron ore, nickel, bauxite and copper/gold.
Since 1987, QMASTOR‘s innovative solutions have empowered clients to improve their operations and maximise profit through the efficient use of resources across the supply chain.
For further information contact: Trent Bagnall – Managing Director
Phone: +61 (2) 4908 2222
Email: tbagnall@qmastor.com
Web: www.qmastor.com